For people with a low income and few assets, a Debt Relief Order could be an alternative to bankruptcy.

Debts will be frozen for 12 months

If you meet the qualifying criteria and your application is accepted, all payments to your unsecured debts (credit cards, loans, overdrafts etc.) will be suspended for 12 months. DROs are not available in Scotland.

Your unsecured debts could be written off

At the end of the 12 months, if your circumstances haven't improved, your unsecured debts will be written off. If your circumstances improve whilst you're on a DRO, your DRO could be revoked.

Only a £90 fee, compared to £680 with bankruptcy

Full bankruptcy fees cost up to £680. A DRO costs £90. And because it's aimed at people in extremely difficult financial circumstances, even this could be paid in instalments.

Credit rating

A Debt Relief Order, like all debt solutions, will affect your credit rating. It will appear on your file for six years and will be recorded in the publicly available Insolvency Register.

Answer a few questions online, find out if a DRO is right for you

Quickly find out if Debt Relief Order is right for you

Debt Relief Orders are available subject to eligibility and acceptance, alternative solutions may be offered. Fees payable if continuing services are provided. Our fees are explained here.

To find out more about managing your money and getting free debt advice, visit Money Advice Service, an independent service set up to help people manage their money.

The Debt Relief Order process is for people who can't afford to pay their debts and who can't afford to go bankrupt either – so it costs less

What will happen during a Debt Relief Order (DRO)...

Advice

A Money Advisor will gather information, explain your options and help you decide if a DRO is right for you.

Options

If a DRO is the right solution for you, a Money Advisor will prepare the DRO application documents with you.

It'll then be passed to the Insolvency Service for review.

Proposal

The Insolvency Service will review your application and decide whether to accept it. Once accepted, your lenders will be made aware and they then can't contact you for payments for the next 12 months.

Solution

At the end of the 12 months, if your circumstances haven't improved, you'll be automatically discharged, and all of your outstanding debts included in the DRO will be written off.

Debt Relief Orders can only be arranged by approved Money Advisors, so talk to us for expert advice

More about Debt Relief Orders

It's a route out of debt if you don't have any disposable income

If you have less than £50 in disposable money every month, your payments towards your unsecured debts on the plan would be stopped altogether while the Debt Relief Order is in place.

...and if you don't have any assets

Debt Relief Orders are specifically designed for people with few or no assets at all. If your assets amount to less than £1000, and your car is also worth less than £1000, a DRO could be right for you.

Interest and Charges

If you're approved for a Debt Relief Order (DRO) your lenders have to freeze interest and charges on all the debts included in the solution, meaning your debts won't get bigger as the DRO progresses.

Once your DRO term ends

As long as everything goes to plan with your Debt Relief Order, and your financial situation doesn't improve by the end of the Debt Relief Order, your unsecured debts will be written off.

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Your payments into a Debt Management Plan are protected and compensation could be available from the FSCS if there are any shortfalls in funds held on a customer's behalf.

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